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 Printed From The Island Park News
2007-09-14
Grizzly mauls hunter in Island Park
Pepper spray may have saved man's life
By ELIZABETH LADEN
An archery hunter from Tennessee was mauled by a grizzly bear when he was elk hunting near Reas Pass Creek in Island Park Tuesday. The creek is northeast of Big Springs.
Idaho Fish and Game Department regional wildlife manager Daryl Meintz said Derek Fesmire of Lexington, TN. and a hunting partner were waiting in a still position typical of archery hunters in thick lodgepole pines when a grizzly sow and her cub wandered into the area.
"It was a close encounter," Meintz said. "The sow charged and Fesmire sprayed her with pepper spray. The bear ran past him through the spray, turned, bit him once in the lower abdomen, and then took off, the cub following."
Meintz said the hunter had familiarized himself with how to use the spray properly in a bear attack and carried it on his hip. "He did everything right. The spray was not in the bottom of a pack where he could not reach it quickly," Meintz said.
Meintz said Fesmire felt the situation may have been much worse if he has not used spray to deter the bear.
"The bear was displaying natural aggression to protect her young," said Meintz. He said the hunters did not notice an ear tag or collar on the bear, and IDFG personnel went to the area and confirmed, from hair and tracks, that it was a grizzly, not a black bear. He said no action will be taken to trap the bear.
Fesmire went to Madison Memorial Hospital in Rexburg, where he was treated and released.
Meintz emphasized that anyone entering the forest in Island Park to hunt or for recreation should bring pepper spray with them, wear it properly, and know how to use it. Both grizzly and black bear sightings are up all over the community right now.
Fesmire used a product known as Pepper Power Bear Deterrent. He carried a 7.9 ounce canister packed with a pepper spray formula developed by Mark Matheny, a grizzly bear attack survivor. The spray and holsters to hold it so it is readily available are sold at some sporting goods stores and on line at www.PepperPower.com.
The site also contains information about living through bear encounters. Other good information about living and playing in bear country is on line a www.centerforwildlifeinfo.org
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